HappyTummy              

Once again, this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie pick reinforced why I joined the TWD group in the first place—to branch out of my comfort zone and try recipes I’d never normally think to make. I loved this blanc-manger—it is the perfect summer dessert, I think. Fluffy and light, fruity and creamy. A really simple recipe that looks rather fancy!

One of the big reasons I loved this dessert was because it was very almondy. Most of my favorite Dorie recipes have been those that feature ground almonds—I love the nutty undertones in her Linzer Sablés, French Pear Tart and French Yogurt Cake. So I was quite happy to see that this blanc-manger used them too!

I live near a very cool grocery store, which sells just about everything in bulk. (I’ve written about Caputo’s before—I found the very elusive chestnut powder there, once upon a time.) I usually buy my pre-ground almonds there since the prices are so good, but since I had just recently purchased two pounds of raw almonds, I decided to grind my own this time around.

I suppose I could have just put a handful of nuts into the food processor and go from there, but I really wanted my blanc-manger to be, well, blanc. Have you ever blanched almonds before? It’s so easy—just submerge raw almonds into hot water for about a minute and a half, drain and cool, then simply pop the nuts out of the skin! As soon as the blanched almonds are completely dry, you can grind them up in a food processor. But watch out—you don’t want to overgrind, or else you’ll end up with almond butter!

Instead of raspberries, I went with blackberries. I’m not a huge fan of the raspberry’s tartness, and I thought the blackberries would be a nice substitute. Caputo’s had beautiful, plump blackberries on sale—I thought they’d stain the blanc-manger a lovely purple color.

It seems like a lot of people chose to skip this recipe because it used gelatin. Although I’m a mostly-vegetarian, I didn’t have any problems using it. I choose to eat only veggies not because of any ethical or moral reasons, but rather for health reasons. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you know that I suffer from IBS-C, and have changed my diet to really focus on fiber. My body has a very hard time digesting animal products. That being said, I didn’t think a little gelatin would hurt me. And in the end, that’s what made this dessert spectacular—wonderfully fluffy and light in your mouth, with a delightful springiness to it, no doubt due to the gelatin.

I didn’t have any special occasion to make the large blanc-manger, so I decided to make four individual portions in little ramekins instead. It was a perfect choice—B and I had blackberry blanc-manger for dessert, two nights in a row. A big thanks goes to Susan, who chose this week’s recipe. You can find Dorie’s original recipe for Raspberry Blanc-Manger on Susan’s blog, Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy; my adapted version is below.

Recipe: Raspberry Blanc-Manger
Makes 6 servings (I halved the recipe and created four individual servings in ramekins)

• 1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
• 3/4 cup whole milk (I used 2% milk)
• 3/4 cup ground almonds
• 1/2 cup sugar (I used turbinado sugar)
• 1 1/4-ounce packet unflavored gelatin
• 3 tablespoons cold water
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup raspberries (or assorted berries), or soft fruit cut into small pieces (I used blackberries)
• Raspberry Coulis, for serving (optional) (I made a blackberry coulis)

Have an 8-x-2-inch round cake pan at hand. Fill a large bowl with ice cubes and cold water, and set out a smaller bowl that fits into this ice-water bath.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream until it holds soft peaks. Refrigerate while you prepare the rest of the dessert.

Put the milk, almonds and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally to make certain the sugar dissolves.

Meanwhile, put the gelatin and cold water in a microwave-safe bowl or a small saucepan. When the gelatin is soft and spongy, about 2 minutes, heat it in the microwave oven for 15 seconds, or cook it over low heat, to dissolve it. Stir the gelatin into the almond milk and remove the saucepan from the heat.

Pour the hot milk into the smaller reserved bowl and set the bowl in the icewater bath. Stir in the vanilla and continue to stir until the mixture is cool but still liquid — you don’t want the milk to jell in the bowl.

When you’ve cooled down the milk mixture, use a large rubber spatula to very gently fold in the cold whipped cream, followed by the berries. Spoon the blanc-manger into the pan and refrigerate until set, about 3 hours. (If it’s more convenient, you can keep the blanc-manger in the refrigerator overnight; just make sure it is not near anything with a strong odor.)

To unmold the blanc-manger, dip the cake pan up to its rim in hot water for 5 seconds, wipe the pan dry and invert the blanc-manger onto a serving plate. Serve with the raspberry coulis, if desired.

SERVING: The blanc-manger, which must be served cold, can be presented plain with no accompaniments, but it is particularly attractive and extra delicious when it is served with the raspberry coulis. It can also be served with additional fresh berries or a spoonful of fruit salad. Pineapple goes well with the sweet, shimmery cake, but because fresh pineapple reacts with gelatin, put it on the side of the serving plate, if you want to use it, not in the dessert.

STORING: The blanc-manger can be kept in the refrigerator overnight. Keep it well covered in its pan and unmold it at the last minute before serving.

PLAYING AROUND: There are two little things you can do to make your blancmanger a dead ringer for a pâtisserie offering. One is to glaze the top of the cake with a thin gloss of jelly. If you want a clear gloss, use apple or quince jelly; for a pink glow, use red currant jelly. Whatever jelly you choose, bring a couple of tablespoons of the jelly to a boil with a splash of water — you can do this in a microwave oven or in a small pan over direct heat.

Using a pastry brush, spread a very thin layer of the jelly over the very cold cake (the cake must be fully set and cold before you put hot jelly on it).

Then, if the cake looks as if it may have melted a tad, just put it back in the fridge to chill a while before serving.

The second thing you can do is put the blanc-manger on a base: The traditional base is a thin disk of sponge cake — … any white or yellow cake, homemade or store-bought, would be good; just remember that you want a round that’s between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick, not a whole layer. … If you decide to use a base, you should build the blanc-manger in a springform pan. Put the cake or baked dough layer on the bottom, then pour in the blanc-manger mixture and chill.